Hoboken City Council: Flooding is Bad, But We’re Not Going to Fix It

Back in December, the Hoboken City Council voted unanimously to move forward on the funding for an H-5 wet weather pump. Everyone congratulated each other on their visionary, unified stance to boldly come out against flooding…

…but that resolve has since wavered.

In a meeting last night, the Hoboken City Council failed to secure the 6 votes needed to pass the funding for the pump—a pump with a capacity of 40 million gallons per day featuring a built-in emergency generator, that would alleviate flooding in western Hoboken, including the area around ShopRite. The pump was to be financed by an $11.9 million low-interest loan from the New Jersey Environmental Infrastructure Trust, which includes 19% principal forgiveness.

The vote came up 5-2, with five for the pump and two against the pump, with two councilpersons seemingly unable to attend the meeting.

If you’re a Hobokenite who is against the whole idea of flooding—or, out of fairness, even if you’re passionately pro-flooding—now might be a good time to reach out to your councilperson and let him or her know how you feel.